1 00:00:02,690 --> 00:00:13,450 Speaker 1: Life Audio Hello. Thank you for listening to your daily 2 00:00:13,490 --> 00:00:17,070 Speaker 1: Bible verse, the podcast that examines one verse each day 3 00:00:17,640 --> 00:00:19,980 Speaker 1: to learn more about God and His will for us. 4 00:00:21,000 --> 00:00:23,660 Speaker 1: I'm your host, Jennifer Slattery, and after this short word 5 00:00:23,680 --> 00:00:27,380 Speaker 1: from our sponsors, we'll continue our series, Courage for the Journey, 6 00:00:27,680 --> 00:00:30,720 Speaker 1: Trusting God One Step at a Time, with a discussion 7 00:00:30,800 --> 00:00:45,810 Speaker 1: on today's Bible verse, Joshua 830. Today's Bible verse is 8 00:00:45,870 --> 00:00:50,250 Speaker 1: Joshua 830. Then Joshua built on Mount Ebal an altar 9 00:00:50,390 --> 00:00:55,720 Speaker 1: to the Lord, the God of Israel. It's nearly impossible 10 00:00:55,860 --> 00:01:00,600 Speaker 1: to display courageous faith with a divided heart. I've served 11 00:01:00,640 --> 00:01:03,900 Speaker 1: Jesus long enough to understand this and the importance of 12 00:01:03,980 --> 00:01:09,080 Speaker 1: remaining connected to Christ and his ways. Living that out, however, 13 00:01:09,440 --> 00:01:12,750 Speaker 1: is another matter. Sadly, I'm much more apt to cling 14 00:01:12,780 --> 00:01:15,250 Speaker 1: to him and his truth in times of crisis or 15 00:01:15,280 --> 00:01:20,029 Speaker 1: when facing a challenging assignment. When my world feels routine 16 00:01:20,530 --> 00:01:25,330 Speaker 1: or filled with blessings, however, my desire to live fully 17 00:01:25,390 --> 00:01:29,800 Speaker 1: yielded to the Spirit can wane. I soon find myself 18 00:01:29,840 --> 00:01:33,120 Speaker 1: spending more time consuming content that pulls me from Jesus 19 00:01:33,640 --> 00:01:37,699 Speaker 1: than that which nourishes and strengthens my soul. This is 20 00:01:37,760 --> 00:01:41,980 Speaker 1: a problem because an untended soul is prone to stray. 21 00:01:42,620 --> 00:01:45,410 Speaker 1: We see this throughout scripture, including in the chapters leading 22 00:01:45,450 --> 00:01:48,750 Speaker 1: to ancient Israel's entering the promised land and much of 23 00:01:48,830 --> 00:01:54,280 Speaker 1: their history afterward with deeply painful consequences. This is one 24 00:01:54,340 --> 00:01:58,460 Speaker 1: reason God instituted so many religious rituals and practices. He 25 00:01:58,500 --> 00:02:03,220 Speaker 1: wasn't merely granting a people group access to acreage. He 26 00:02:03,270 --> 00:02:06,490 Speaker 1: was forming them into a holy nation and, quote, And 27 00:02:06,510 --> 00:02:09,350 Speaker 1: now Joshua, the courageous warrior who watched the walls of 28 00:02:09,370 --> 00:02:11,910 Speaker 1: Jericho fall, followed by a major defeat that resulted in 29 00:02:11,910 --> 00:02:25,980 Speaker 1: 36 lives lost and a major hit to the people's morale, 30 00:02:26,320 --> 00:02:31,400 Speaker 1: was calling the nation to recommit to the Lord. According 31 00:02:31,440 --> 00:02:36,330 Speaker 1: to Joshua 8.34, Joshua was executing the instructions Moses gave 32 00:02:36,370 --> 00:02:39,470 Speaker 1: back in Deuteronomy 11. Some of you might remember this 33 00:02:39,550 --> 00:02:42,669 Speaker 1: from our Moses series a couple years ago. In essence, 34 00:02:42,750 --> 00:02:47,570 Speaker 1: through Moses, the Lord laid out two life trajectories— If 35 00:02:47,669 --> 00:02:51,530 Speaker 1: his people kept the covenant he'd established by remaining connected to, 36 00:02:51,590 --> 00:02:55,369 Speaker 1: dependent on, and led by him, he would bless and 37 00:02:55,570 --> 00:03:01,330 Speaker 1: protect them. If, however, they rejected him, they'd experience consequences 38 00:03:01,389 --> 00:03:18,260 Speaker 1: for their sin. As verse 35 states, Meaning, Everyone heard scripture. 39 00:03:19,220 --> 00:03:22,959 Speaker 1: Everyone needed to live according to truth. Otherwise, they would 40 00:03:23,080 --> 00:03:28,200 Speaker 1: necessarily veer from it. Please don't mishear me. I'm not 41 00:03:28,320 --> 00:03:32,560 Speaker 1: saying we're under that same covenantal system as ancient Israel. 42 00:03:32,650 --> 00:03:36,550 Speaker 1: We're not. We belong to the new covenant Jesus established 43 00:03:36,570 --> 00:03:39,790 Speaker 1: through his death and resurrection. But that doesn't mean we 44 00:03:39,830 --> 00:03:44,920 Speaker 1: won't experience consequences for our choices. When we recognize our 45 00:03:45,120 --> 00:03:49,020 Speaker 1: propensity as fallible and easily deceived humans to veer from 46 00:03:49,080 --> 00:03:52,820 Speaker 1: the Lord, we're more apt to apply God's instructions in 47 00:03:52,880 --> 00:03:56,100 Speaker 1: Hebrews 2 verse 1, which reads, For this reason we 48 00:03:56,160 --> 00:03:59,120 Speaker 1: must pay much closer attention to what we have heard, 49 00:03:59,320 --> 00:04:03,000 Speaker 1: so that we do not drift away from it. Thriving life, 50 00:04:03,440 --> 00:04:07,550 Speaker 1: courageous living, can only come through Christ and living aligned 51 00:04:07,670 --> 00:04:11,490 Speaker 1: with Him and His truth. Therefore, we must regularly come 52 00:04:11,570 --> 00:04:14,150 Speaker 1: to the altar to meet with the Lord, receive his guidance, 53 00:04:14,730 --> 00:04:19,030 Speaker 1: and recommit ourselves to him and his ways. That doesn't 54 00:04:19,089 --> 00:04:22,360 Speaker 1: mean we can attend church once a week or offer 55 00:04:22,380 --> 00:04:25,260 Speaker 1: a prayer of recommitment every once in a while and 56 00:04:25,740 --> 00:04:30,120 Speaker 1: consider ourselves good. To experience courage for the journey and 57 00:04:30,200 --> 00:04:34,180 Speaker 1: victory for the battles ahead, we must prioritize the spiritual 58 00:04:34,220 --> 00:04:38,620 Speaker 1: disciplines that keep our souls strong, nourished, pure, and healthy. 59 00:04:39,279 --> 00:04:43,440 Speaker 1: For me, this means reading scripture and praying daily, regularly 60 00:04:43,520 --> 00:04:47,839 Speaker 1: resting silently in God's presence, attending church each week, and 61 00:04:47,940 --> 00:04:52,450 Speaker 1: participating in sacred rites and celebrations like Communion and Resurrection 62 00:04:52,490 --> 00:04:58,230 Speaker 1: Sunday to recalibrate my otherwise fickle and disobedient soul. I'm 63 00:04:58,330 --> 00:05:00,630 Speaker 1: curious as to what this might look like for you. 64 00:05:01,250 --> 00:05:04,250 Speaker 1: How do you guard your heart, as Proverbs 4.23 instructs, 65 00:05:04,810 --> 00:05:08,440 Speaker 1: so that goodness and beauty can flow in you, through you, 66 00:05:08,990 --> 00:05:13,790 Speaker 1: and ultimately from you, bringing God's life and light wherever 67 00:05:13,830 --> 00:05:18,510 Speaker 1: your feet tread. Maybe choose one spiritual discipline to consistently 68 00:05:18,570 --> 00:05:21,550 Speaker 1: practice this week, to make it a habit and a 69 00:05:21,670 --> 00:05:27,870 Speaker 1: conscious way to grow courageous faith. Let's pray. Holy Father, 70 00:05:27,910 --> 00:05:31,710 Speaker 1: you are so faithful, so gracious to care for us, 71 00:05:31,750 --> 00:05:37,180 Speaker 1: your often wayward children. You lavish us with grace, grace 72 00:05:37,279 --> 00:05:40,179 Speaker 1: for the sins we committed in the past, the sins 73 00:05:40,279 --> 00:05:43,360 Speaker 1: we're wrestling with today, and every sin we might commit 74 00:05:43,400 --> 00:05:47,529 Speaker 1: in the future. As Scripture states, when sin abounded, grace 75 00:05:47,650 --> 00:05:51,290 Speaker 1: abounded so much more. And so we live in that reality, 76 00:05:51,330 --> 00:05:54,870 Speaker 1: but we also recognize that there's consequences for our decisions 77 00:05:54,930 --> 00:05:58,690 Speaker 1: here on earth, and we would much rather live aligned 78 00:05:59,290 --> 00:06:01,970 Speaker 1: with you because you know us. You know everything we're 79 00:06:01,990 --> 00:06:04,470 Speaker 1: going to encounter. You are for us. You love us 80 00:06:04,690 --> 00:06:07,610 Speaker 1: deeply and you are always leading us on the best 81 00:06:07,730 --> 00:06:11,540 Speaker 1: path for our lives. When we struggle to really prioritize you, 82 00:06:11,560 --> 00:06:15,159 Speaker 1: to prioritize the things of you, remind us of what's 83 00:06:15,220 --> 00:06:18,960 Speaker 1: at stake. Remind us of the dangers of leaving our 84 00:06:19,020 --> 00:06:22,420 Speaker 1: souls untended. Increase our love for you. Increase our love 85 00:06:22,460 --> 00:06:25,520 Speaker 1: for scripture. Increase our desire to spend time with you. 86 00:06:26,029 --> 00:06:29,940 Speaker 1: Show us where we can take pockets of time, whether 87 00:06:30,000 --> 00:06:33,140 Speaker 1: it's when we're sitting at a stoplight or in line 88 00:06:33,180 --> 00:06:36,000 Speaker 1: at the grocery store or we're waiting on a meeting. 89 00:06:36,440 --> 00:06:40,800 Speaker 1: Help us to snatch every moment that's available to pause, 90 00:06:40,880 --> 00:06:43,930 Speaker 1: to connect with you. Help us to prioritize our time 91 00:06:43,990 --> 00:06:47,409 Speaker 1: reading scripture so that your truth can take hold, take 92 00:06:47,630 --> 00:06:51,430 Speaker 1: root in our souls, transforming the way we think and 93 00:06:51,529 --> 00:06:57,919 Speaker 1: transforming the way we live. Remind us of who you are, 94 00:06:58,100 --> 00:07:02,440 Speaker 1: of your love, your power, your grace, your brilliance. Because 95 00:07:02,490 --> 00:07:05,490 Speaker 1: the more we know you, the more we trust you, 96 00:07:06,070 --> 00:07:09,490 Speaker 1: and the more we want to follow you. And that 97 00:07:09,750 --> 00:07:13,950 Speaker 1: is how we live courageously, how we experience the thriving 98 00:07:14,010 --> 00:07:18,110 Speaker 1: life your Son, our Savior, Jesus Christ promised in John 10, 99 00:07:18,110 --> 00:07:22,540 Speaker 1: verse 10. And it's in his name that we pray. Amen.